Demographics of Australia#Population

File:ABS-3101.0-AustralianDemographicStatistics-EstimatedResidentPopulationStatesTerritories-EstimatedResidentPopulation-Persons-Australia-A2060842F.svg

Population estimates in the table below do not include the Aboriginal population before 1961. Estimates of Aboriginal population before European settlement range from 300,000 to one million, with archaeological finds indicating a sustainable maximum population of around 750,000.{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/94713ad45ff1425ca25682000192af2/bfc28642d31c215cca256b350010b3f4!OpenDocument|work=1301.0 – Year Book Australia, 2002|title=Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population|date=20 August 2007|publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics|access-date=21 October 2009}} Where available, actual population figures from census years are included.

{{box|border color=#bdc0c4|header=Historic population (estimated)

|{{div flex row}}

{{Historical populations

|title = Pre-1788

|type = Australia

|align = left

|width = 14em

|cols = 1

|subbox = y

|source ={{cite book|last=Briscoe|first=Gordon|title=The Aboriginal Population Revisited: 70,000 years to the present|year=2002|publisher=Aboriginal History Inc.|location=Canberra, Australia|isbn=978-0-9585637-6-5|author2=Smith, Len|page=12}}

| pop_name=Indigenous population

| pre 1788| 300,000 to 1,000,000

}}

{{Historical populations

|title = Settlement{{spaced endash}} Federation

|type = Australia

|width = 14em

|align = right

|cols = 1

|subbox = y

|source ={{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/3105.0.65.0012014?OpenDocument|title=TABLE 1.1. Population by sex, states and territories, 31 December 1788 onwards|date=23 May 2014|access-date=8 July 2019}}

| percentages=pagr

| pop_name=Non-indigenous population

| 1788 | 859

| 1798 | 4,588

| 1808 | 10,263

| 1818 | 25,859

| 1828 | 58,197

| 1838 | 151,868

| 1848 | 332,328

| 1858 | 1,050,828

| 1868 | 1,539,552

| 1878 | 2,092,164

| 1888 | 2,981,677

| 1898 | 3,664,715

}}

{{Historical populations

|title = Post-Federation

|type = Australia

|align = right

|width = 14em

|cols = 1

|subbox = y

|source ={{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/3105.0.65.0012014?OpenDocument|title=TABLE 1.2. Population by sex, states and territories, 30 June 1901 onwards|publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics|date=23 May 2014|access-date=8 July 2019}}{{Census 2001 AUS|id=0|name=Australia|access-date=24 January 2016|quick=on}}{{Census 2006 AUS|id=0|name=Australia|access-date=24 January 2016|quick=on}}{{Census 2011 AUS|id=0|name=Australia|access-date=24 January 2016|quick=on}}{{Census 2016 AUS|id=0|name=Australia|access-date=13 July 2017|quick=on}}

|pop_name = Total population

| footnote = Note: Estimated populations prior to 1961 do not include the Indigenous population.

| 1901 | 3,788,123

| 1906 | 4,059,083

| 1911 | 4,489,545

| 1916 | 4,943,173

| 1921 | 5,455,136

| 1926 | 6,056,360

| 1931 | 6,526,485

| 1936 | 6,778,372

| 1941 | 7,109,898

| 1946 | 7,465,157

| 1951 | 8,421,775

| 1956 | 9,425,563

| 1961 | 10,548,267

| 1966 | 11,599,498

| 1971 | 13,067,265

| 1976 | 14,033,083

| 1981 | 14,923,260

| 1986 | 16,018,350

| 1991 | 17,284,036

| 1996 | 18,224,767

| 2001 | 18,769,249

| 2006 | 19,855,288

| 2011 | 21,507,717

| 2016 | {{formatnum:23401892}}

| 2021 | 25,417,978

}}

{{Div flex row end}}

}}

File:Population pyramid of Australia from 1950 to 2020.gif

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics.{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/3105.0.65.0012008|author=Australian Bureau of Statistics|title=3105.0.65.001 - Australian Historical Population Statistics, 2008 - 4. Population Age-Sex Structure - 4.1 Population, age and sex, Australia 30 June, 1901 onwards|date=5 August 2008|author-link=Australian Bureau of Statistics}}{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/7d12b0f6763c78caca257061001cc588/db7193812e1efc92ca2570ec000e215a!OpenDocument|author=Australian Bureau of Statistics|title=Population Characteristics: 20th century: beginning and end|date=6 April 2006|author-link=Australian Bureau of Statistics}}{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Previousproducts/3101.0Media%20Release3Jun%202015|author=Australian Bureau of Statistics|title=3101.0 - Australian Demographic Statistics, Jun 2015|date=15 February 2016|author-link=Australian Bureau of Statistics}}{{cite web|url=https://profile.id.com.au/australia/five-year-age-groups|author=.idcommunity|title=Australia. Five year age groups}}

File:Australian Census 2011 demographic map - Australia by SLA - BCP field 0109 Median age of persons.svg

Median age of the Australia population through history. Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics.{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/2f762f95845417aeca25706c00834efa/e2f62e625b7855bfca2570ec0073cdf6!OpenDocument|title=4102.0 - Australian Social Trends, 1996|author=Australian Bureau of Statistics|date=15 March 2006|author-link=Australian Bureau of Statistics}}{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/3105.0.65.0012008|title=3105.0.65.001 - Australian Historical Population Statistics, 2008. 4. Population Age-Sex Structure - 4.18. Median age by sex, states and territories, 30 June, 1971 onwards |author=Australian Bureau of Statistics|date=5 August 2008|author-link=Australian Bureau of Statistics }}

File:Australian Census 2011 demographic map - Australia by SLA - BCP field 0259 Age years 0 Persons.svg

File:Australian Census 2011 demographic map - Australia by SLA - BCP field 0274 Age years 0 4 years Persons.svg

{{Hidden begin

|title= Population by Sex and Age Group (Census 09.VIII.2016) (These data have been randomly rounded to protect confidentiality. Individual figures may not add up to totals, and values for the same data may vary in different tables.):{{Cite web |title=UNSD — Demographic and Social Statistics |url=https://unstats.un.org/unsd/demographic-social/products/dyb/#statistics |access-date=2023-05-10 |website=unstats.un.org}}

|titlestyle = background:#EEBC35;

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File:50% of Australia's population (2024).svg]]

{{As of|2022|6}}, the population density of Australia was reported as {{convert|3.4|/km2|/sqmi|abbr=on}}.{{cite web |title=3218.0 – Regional Population Growth, Australia, 2021-22 financial year |date=31 August 2023 |url=https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/population/regional-population/latest-release |access-date=22 February 2024 |publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics}} This makes Australia the 3rd least densely populated country in the world, after Namibia and Mongolia.{{cite web |title=Population density (people per sq. km of land area) |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/EN.POP.DNST?year_high_desc=false |website=World Bank Open Data |publisher=The World Bank |access-date=21 April 2019}}

{{See also|States and territories of Australia}}

{{Main|List of cities in Australia by population|List of cities in Australia}}

Australia contains five cities (including their suburbs) that consist of over one million people. Most of Australia's population live close to coastlines.{{cite web |url=http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/beach/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100226144234/http://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/beach/ |archive-date=26 February 2010 |title=The Beach |work=Australian Government: Culture Portal |publisher=Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, Commonwealth of Australia |date=17 March 2008 }}

{{Largest cities of Australia}}{{Clear}}

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The total fertility rate is the number of children born per woman. It is based on fairly good data for the entire period. Sources: Our World In Data and Gapminder Foundation.{{citation|url=https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/children-born-per-woman?year=1800&country=AUS|title=Total Fertility Rate around the world over the last centuries|author=Max Roser|date=2014|work=Our World In Data, Gapminder Foundation}}

The following figures show the total fertility rates since the first years of British colonisation.

The crude birth rate is the total number of live births per 1,000 population in a year. Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics.{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/3105.0.65.0012006?OpenDocument|title=3105.0.65.001 - Australian Historical Population Statistics, 2006.Table 42. Crude birth rates, states and territories, 1860 onwards|author= Australian Bureau of Statistics|date=23 May 2006|author-link=Australian Bureau of Statistics}}

Source:{{cite web|url=http://www.ined.fr/en/everything_about_population/data/online-databases/developed-countries-database/|title=Developed countries database|work=ined.fr|access-date=10 July 2012}}

{{notelist-ua}}

{{cite web|url=https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/population/national-state-and-territory-population|title=National, state and territory population |publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics}}

{{Cite web |date=2024-10-16 |title=Births, Australia, 2023 {{!}} Australian Bureau of Statistics |url=https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/population/births-australia/latest-release |access-date=2025-04-29 |website=www.abs.gov.au |language=en}}

File:Life expectancy in Australia.svg in Australia since 1885]]

{{See also|List of Australian states by life expectancy}}

At the time of Australian Federation in 1901, the rate of natural increase was 14.9 persons per 1,000 population. The rate increased to a peak of 17.4 per thousand population in the years 1912, 1913 and 1914. During the Great Depression, the rate declined to a low of 7.1 per thousand population in 1934 and 1935. Immediately after World War II, the rate increased sharply as a result of the start of the post–World War II baby boom and the immigration of many young people who then had children in Australia. A rate plateau of over 13.0 persons per 1,000 population occurred for every year from 1946 to 1962.

There has been a fall in the rate of natural increase since 1962 due to falling fertility. In 1971, the rate of natural increase was 12.7 persons per 1,000 population; a decade later it had fallen to 8.5. In 1996 the rate of natural increase fell below seven for the first time, with the downward trend continuing in the late 1990s. Population projections by the Australian Bureau of Statistics indicate that continued low fertility, combined with the increase in deaths from an ageing population, will result in natural increase falling below zero sometime in the mid-2030s. However, in 2006 the fertility rate rose to 1.81, one of the highest rates in the OECD.

Since 1901, the crude death rate has fallen from about 12.2 deaths per 1,000 population, to 6.4 deaths per 1,000 population in 2006.{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/bb8db737e2af84b8ca2571780015701e/72097B9A70C71596CA2573D20010FD0A?opendocument|title=Population Size and Growth|work=1301.0 – Year Book Australia, 2008|publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics|date=7 February 2008|access-date=3 January 2009}}

Source: Our World in Data{{Cite web|url=https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/life-expectancy?year=1810|title=Life expectancy|website=Our World in Data|access-date=28 August 2018}}

File:Life expectancy by WBG -Australia -diff.png

Source: UN World Population Prospects{{cite web|url=https://esa.un.org/unpd/wpp/DataQuery/|title=World Population Prospects – Population Division – United Nations|year=2019|publisher=United Nations, Population Division|access-date=10 July 2019}}

File:Australian Census 2011 demographic map - Australia by SLA - BCP field 0054 Indigenous Persons Total Persons.svg

{{Main|Indigenous Australians}}

The earliest accepted timeline for the first arrivals of indigenous Australians to the continent of Australia places this human migration to at least 40,000 years ago.{{cite web|url=http://media.uow.edu.au/news/2004/0917a/index.html|title=When did Australia's earliest inhabitants arrive?|publisher=University of Wollongong|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090621020107/http://media.uow.edu.au/news/2004/0917a/index.html|archive-date=21 June 2009|date=17 September 2004|access-date=3 January 2009}}

Dutch navigators landed on the coasts of modern Western Australia and Queensland several times during the 17th century. Captain James Cook wrote that he claimed the east coast for Great Britain in 1770 while standing on Possession Island off the west coast of Cape York Peninsula. The west coast was later settled by Britain also. At that time, the indigenous population was estimated to have numbered between as few as 315,000 and as many as 1,100,000,{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/bb8db737e2af84b8ca2571780015701e/68AE74ED632E17A6CA2573D200110075?opendocument|title=Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Population|work=1301.0 – Year Book Australia, 2008|publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics|date=7 February 2008|access-date=3 January 2009}}{{cite journal |last1=Williams |first1=Alan N. |date=22 June 2013 |title=A new population curve for prehistoric Australia |journal=Proceedings of the Royal Society B |volume=280 |issue=1761 |pages=1–9 |doi=10.1098/rspb.2013.0486 |pmid=23615287 |pmc=3652441 }} divided into many tribes speaking many different languages. In the {{CensusAU|2011}}, 495,757 respondents declared they were Aboriginal, 31,407 declared they were Torres Strait Islander, and a further 21,206 declared they were both Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders.{{Census 2011 AUS|id=0|name=Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples (Indigenous) Profile|access-date=9 October 2013}}

Today, most of Australia's Indigenous population live on the east coast of Australia, where almost 60% of Indigenous Australians live in New South Wales (208,476) and Queensland (188,954) which roughly represents 2–5% of those state's populations. The Northern Territory has an Indigenous population of 61,115, which represents 26.3% of the total Northern Territory population.{{Cite web |title=2021 Northern Territory, Census All persons QuickStats |url=https://www.abs.gov.au/census/find-census-data/quickstats/2021/7 |access-date=Jan 12, 2024 |website=Australian Bureau of Statistics }}

There were 24,737 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander births registered in 2023, an increase of 349 babies from 2022. This represents 8.6% of all births registered in 2023. The total fertility rate for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women was 2.17 births per woman.{{Cite web |title=Births, Australia, 2023 |url=https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/population/births-australia/2023 |access-date=Jan 26, 2025 |website=Australian Bureau of Statistics }}

Of the 24,388 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander births registered in 2022 only 23% were births for which both parents were identified as being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander origin on the birth certificate. 45% were births where only the mother was of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander origin (including births where paternity was not acknowledged or the father's Indigenous status was not stated), and 32% were births where only the father was of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander origin (including births where the mother's Indigenous status was not stated).{{Cite web |title=Estimates and Projections, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians |url=https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-peoples/estimates-and-projections-aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander-australians/2011-2031 |access-date=Jan 26, 2025 |website=Australian Bureau of Statistics }}

{{main|Australians}}

File:European Australians from 1947 to 1966.gif

The earliest accepted timeline for the first arrivals of humans to the continent of Australia places this human migration to at least 65,000 years ago,{{cite journal|last1=Weule |first1=Genelle |author2=Felicity James |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2017-07-20/aboriginal-shelter-pushes-human-history-back-to-65,000-years/8719314 |title=Indigenous rock shelter in Top End pushes Australia's human history back to 65,000 years |journal=Nature |volume=547 |issue=7663 |pages=306–310 |doi=10.1038/nature22968 |pmid=28726833 |publisher=Abc.net.au |date=20 July 2017 |access-date=27 September 2017|hdl=2440/107043 |s2cid=205257212 |hdl-access=free }} most probably from the islands of Indonesia and New Guinea.

Captain James Cook claimed the east coast for Great Britain in 1770; the west coast was later settled by Britain also. At that time, the indigenous population was estimated to have been between 315,000 and 750,000, divided into as many as 500 tribes speaking many different languages.

Between 1788 and the Second World War, the vast majority of settlers and immigrants came from the British Isles (principally England, Ireland and Scotland), although there was significant immigration from China and Germany during the 19th century. In the decades immediately following the Second World War, Australia received a large wave of immigration from across Europe, with many more immigrants arriving from Southern and Eastern Europe than in previous decades. Since the end of the White Australia policy in 1973, Australia has pursued an official policy of multiculturalism,{{cite web|url=http://www.immi.gov.au/facts/06evolution.htm|title=The Evolution of Australia's Multicultural Policy|access-date=18 September 2007|year=2005|publisher=Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060219130703/http://www.immi.gov.au/facts/06evolution.htm|archive-date=19 February 2006}} and there has been a large and continuing wave of immigration from across the world, with Asia being the largest source of immigrants in the 21st century.{{cite web|url=https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/research-and-stats/files/report-migration-program-2018-19.pdf|title=2018-19 Migration Program Report|website=Department of Home Affairs|date=30 June 2019}}

The Australian Bureau of Statistics no longer collects data on race, but does ask each Australian resident to nominate up to two ancestries each census.{{cite web | url=https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/detailed-methodology-information/information-papers/understanding-and-using-ancestry-data | title=Understanding and using Ancestry data | Australian Bureau of Statistics | date=28 June 2022 }} These ancestry responses are classified into broad standardised ancestry groups.{{cite web | url=https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/classifications/australian-standard-classification-cultural-and-ethnic-groups-ascceg/latest-release | title=Australian Standard Classification of Cultural and Ethnic Groups (ASCCEG), 2019 | Australian Bureau of Statistics | date=18 December 2019 }} In the 2021 census, the most commonly nominated individual ancestries as a proportion of the total population were:{{Cite web|url=https://www.abs.gov.au/census/find-census-data/community-profiles/2021/AUS/download/GCP_AUS.xlsx|title=2021 Census Community Profiles: Australia}}

{{columns-list|colwidth=12em|

• English (33%)
• Australian (29.9%)
• Irish (9.5%)
• Scottish (8.6%)
• Chinese (5.5%)
• Italian (4.4%)
• German (4%)
• Indian (3.1%)
• Aboriginal (2.9%){{refn|group="N"|Those who nominated their ancestry as "Australian Aboriginal". Does not include Torres Strait Islanders. This relates to nomination of ancestry and is distinct from persons who identify as Indigenous (Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander) which is a separate question.}}
• Greek (1.7%)
• Filipino (1.6%)
• Dutch (1.5%)
• Vietnamese (1.3%)
• Lebanese (1%)
• Polish (0.9%)
• Maltese (0.8%)
• Maori (0.6%)
• Croatian (0.6%)
• South African (0.4%)
• Macedonian (0.3%)

}}

At the 2021 census, 3.2% of the Australian population identified as being Indigenous — Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders.{{refn|group="N"|Indigenous identification is separate to the ancestry question on the Australian Census and persons identifying as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander may identify any ancestry.}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.abs.gov.au/census/find-census-data/quickstats/2021/AUS|title=2021 Australia, Census All persons QuickStats |website=Australian Bureau of Statistics }} In 2020, 7.5% of births were Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander persons up from 5.7% in 2010; Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander fertility rates have stayed above replacement levels even as the nation's has declined rapidly.{{cite web |title=Births, Australia |date=12 August 2021 |url=https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/population/births-australia/latest-release |access-date=3 January 2022}}

Although the ABS does not collect data on race and ethnic background, various studies have put together results of the census to determine the ethnic composition of Australia, the Australian Human Rights Commission has estimated the European population at 76% of the Australian population in 2016,{{Cite web |date=April 2018 |title=Leading for Change A blueprint for cultural diversity and inclusive leadership revisited |url=https://humanrights.gov.au/sites/default/files/document/publication/Leading%20for%20Change_Blueprint2018_FINAL_Web.pdf |access-date=2023-06-26 |website=humanrights.gov.au}} while a media diversity study put it at 72% in 2021, the non-European proportion was 21% and 23% respectively, and the Aboriginal Australian population at 3% in both.{{Cite web |last1=Groutsis |first1=Dimitria |last2=Martin |first2=Lee |last3=Lattouf |first3=Antoinette |last4=Soutphommasane |first4=TIm |last5=Lumby |first5=Catharine |last6=Young |first6=Nareen |last7=Crawford |first7=Joanne |last8=Robertson |first8=Adam |date=2022 |title=Who Gets to Tell Australian Stories? |url=https://www.mediadiversityaustralia.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Who-Gets-to-Tell-Australian-Stories_2.0_FINAL_pdf.pdf |access-date=2023-06-26 |website=mediadiversityaustralia.org}}

Immigration minister Andrew Giles had pledged to incorporate a question on ethnicity into the 2026 Australian census.{{cite news | url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-06-16/federal-government-to-measure-ethnicity-data-multiculturalism/101158038 | title='If you're not counted, you don't know that you exist': Federal government to collect data on Australians' ethnicity | newspaper=ABC News | date=16 June 2022 }} However in 2024 the ABS decided against collecting data on ethnicity in favor of ancestry. As recent studies indicate that the public does not have a consistent understanding of ethnic identity, or the difference between ethnic identity and ancestry. The ABS determined that due to these complexities, collecting both ethnic identity and ancestry on the same form is not feasible for the 2026 Census.{{cite news | url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-04-25/abs-census-ethnicity-ancestry-australia-population-data/103638672 | title=The ABS has changed its mind about ethnicity in the next census. Here's what the experts say | newspaper=ABC News | date=24 April 2024 }}

{{Main|Immigration to Australia|Foreign-born population of Australia}}

File:Australian and foreign born population pyramid in 2021.svg

In 2019, 30% of the Australian resident population, or 7,529,570 people, were born overseas.{{cite web|url=https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/subscriber.nsf/log?openagent&34120do005_201819.xls&3412.0&Data%20Cubes&B95CDCBDF3B53509CA25855700002DC2&0&2018-19&28.04.2020&Latest|title=Table 5.1 Estimated resident population, by country of birth(a), Australia, as at 30 June, 1996 to 2019(b)(c)|publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics|access-date=4 May 2020}}

Australia's population has quadrupled since the end of World War I,{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/3105.0.65.0012006?OpenDocument |title=3105.0.65.001—Australian Historical Population Statistics, 2006 |access-date=18 September 2007 |date=23 May 2006 |format=XLS |publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics |quote=Australian population: (1919) 5,080,912; (2006) 20,209,993 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070908212308/http://abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs%40.nsf/DetailsPage/3105.0.65.0012006?OpenDocument |archive-date= 8 September 2007 |url-status=live |df=dmy}} much of this increase from immigration. Australia has the world's eighth-largest immigrant population, with immigrants accounting for 30% of the population, a higher proportion than in any other nation with a population of over 10 million.United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division, (2015). 'International Migration' in International migrant stock 2015. Accessed from [https://www.un.org/en/development/desa/population/migration/data/estimates2/estimatesmaps.shtml?1t1 International migrant stock 2015: maps] on 24 May 2017 Most immigrants are skilled,{{cite web |url=http://www.immi.gov.au/media/fact-sheets/20planning.htm |title=Fact Sheet 20 – Migration Program Planning Levels |access-date=17 June 2010 |date=11 August 2009 |publisher=Department of Immigration and Citizenship |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100507054151/http://www.immi.gov.au/media/fact-sheets/20planning.htm |archive-date=7 May 2010 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all }} but the immigration quota includes categories for family members and refugees.

The following table shows Australia's population by country of birth as estimated by the Australian Bureau of Statistics in 2023. It shows only countries or regions or birth with a population of over 100,000 residing in Australia.

{{notelist-ua}}

As of 2020, 29.8% of Australia's population was born overseas and 76% as of 2016 had European ancestry. The percentage of Australians with European backgrounds has been declining since the 1960s and 1970s, which is around the time the White Australia policy was abolished.

{{Main|Languages of Australia}}

File:Rate in which the English language is spoken at home in Australia - 2016.png

The vast majority of Australians speak English at home, with the exception of some Aboriginal Australians and first-generation immigrants.

Although Australia has no official language, English has always been the de facto national language and the only common tongue.{{cite web|url=http://www.immi.gov.au/media/publications/multicultural/confer/04/speech18b.htm |title=Pluralist Nations: Pluralist Language Policies? |work=1995 Global Cultural Diversity Conference Proceedings, Sydney |publisher=Department of Immigration and Citizenship |access-date=11 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081220020910/http://www.immi.gov.au/media/publications/multicultural/confer/04/speech18b.htm |archive-date=20 December 2008 |url-status=dead |df=dmy|quote=English has no de jure status, but is so entrenched as the common language that it is de facto the official language as well as the national language.}} Australian English is a major variety of the language, with a distinctive accent and lexicon,{{cite web|url=http://www.nma.gov.au/libraries/attachments/exhibitions/vocabulary_of_australian_english/files/5471/Vocabulary%20of%20Australian%20English.pdf |title=The Vocabulary Of Australian English |last=Moore |first=Bruce |publisher=National Museum of Australia |access-date=5 April 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110320004658/http://www.nma.gov.au/libraries/attachments/exhibitions/vocabulary_of_australian_english/files/5471/Vocabulary%20of%20Australian%20English.pdf |archive-date=20 March 2011 |df=dmy}} and differs slightly from other varieties of English in grammar and spelling."The Macquarie Dictionary", Fourth Edition. The Macquarie Library Pty Ltd, 2005. General Australian serves as the standard variety.

At the 2021 census English was the only language spoken in the homes of 72% of the population. The next most common languages spoken at home are Mandarin Chinese (2.7%), Arabic (1.4%), Vietnamese (1.3%), and Cantonese (1.2%). Considerable proportions of first- and second-generation immigrants are bilingual.

Over 250 Indigenous Australian languages are thought to have existed at the time of first European contact; fewer than 20 are still in daily use by all age groups.{{cite web|url=http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/news/2011/08/a-mission-to-save-indigenous-languages/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131224075354/http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/news/2011/08/a-mission-to-save-indigenous-languages/|archive-date=24 December 2013|title=A mission to save indigenous languages|date=19 August 2011 |publisher=Australian Geographic|access-date=18 March 2016}} About 110 others are spoken exclusively by older people.{{cite web|url=http://arts.gov.au/sites/default/files/pdfs/nils-report-2005.pdf |title=National Indigenous Languages Survey Report 2005 |publisher=Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts |access-date=5 September 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090709141342/http://www.arts.gov.au/indigenous/national_indigenous_languages_survey_report_2005 |archive-date=9 July 2009 |url-status=dead |df=dmy }} At the time of the 2006 census, 52,000 Indigenous Australians, representing 12% of the Indigenous population, reported that they spoke an Indigenous language at home.{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/4713.0 |title=4713.0 – Population Characteristics, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, 2006 |work=Australian Bureau of Statistics |date=4 May 2010 |location=Canberra |access-date=7 December 2010}}

Australia has its own sign language, Auslan. The Australian Bureau of Statistics included Auslan as an option for the first time in the 2021 census when asking which language was used at home.{{Cite web |title=Australia's 2021 Census is the most accessible yet for deaf and vision-impaired people |url=https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/australias-2021-census-is-the-most-accessible-yet-for-deaf-and-vision-impaired-people/ge6x05wwd |access-date=1 October 2024 |website=SBS News |language=en}}{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=29 June 2022 |title=16,000 people use Auslan: Census 2021 |url=https://www.deafnessforum.org.au/census-2021-16000-people-use-auslan/ |access-date=1 October 2024 |website=Deafness Forum Australia |language=}} According to the census, it is the main language of about 16,000 deaf people.

{{Main|Religion in Australia}}

{{Pie chart|thumb=right|caption=Religion in Australia as declared in the 2021 census{{cite web|url=https://www.abs.gov.au/census/find-census-data/community-profiles/2021/AUS/download/GCP_AUS.xlsx|format=XLSX|title=Australian Bureau of Statistics : 2021 Census of Population and Housing : General Community Profile|website=Australian Bureau of Statistics|access-date=2 July 2022}}

| label1 = Christianity

| value1 = 43.9

| color1 = DarkBlue

| label2 = No religion

| value2 = 38.9

| color2 = Beige

| label3 = Islam

| value3 = 3.2

| color3 = Green

| label4 = Hinduism

| value4 = 2.7

| color4 = DarkOrange

| label5 = Buddhism

| value5 = 2.4

| color5 = Gold

| label6 = Sikhism

| value6 = 0.8

| color6 = Red

| label7 = Other religions

| value7 = 0.9

| color7 = Brown

| label8 = Not stated or unclear

| value8 = 7.2

| color8 = LightGrey

}}

At the 2021 Census, 38.9% of the population identified as having "no religion", up from 15.5% in 2001.{{cite web | url=https://www.abs.gov.au/census/find-census-data/quickstats/2001/0 | title=2001 Australia, Census All persons QuickStats | Australian Bureau of Statistics }} The largest religion is Christianity (43.9% of the population). The largest Christian denominations are the Roman Catholic Church (20% of the population) and the Anglican Church of Australia (9.8%). Multicultural immigration since the Second World War has led to the growth of non-Christian religions, the largest of which are Islam (3.2%), Hinduism (2.7%), Buddhism (2.4%), Sikhism (0.8%), and Judaism (0.4%).

The Australian Bureau of Statistics 2001 Census Dictionary statement on religious affiliation states the purpose for gathering such information:

{{blockquote|Data on religious affiliation are used for such purposes as planning educational facilities, aged persons' care and other social services provided by religion-based organisations; the location of church buildings; the assigning of chaplains to hospitals, prisons, armed services and universities; the allocation of time on public radio and other media; and sociological research.}}

Historically, Australian Aboriginal religion and mythology was the prevalent belief system in Australia until around 1840, when European Australians first outnumbered indigenous Australians. For a period, in the 19th and 20th centuries, Australia was majority Protestant with a large Catholic minority.{{cite book|last1=Pettersson|first1=Thorleif|last2=Esmer|first2=Yilmaz R.|title=Changing Values, Persisting Cultures: Case Studies in Value Change|date=2008|publisher=Brill|page=21|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SdhvC4RUDe0C&q=australia+historically+protestant&pg=PA21|isbn=978-9004162341}}{{cite book|title=Australian Political Facts|date=1990|publisher=Longman Chesire|page=122|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ro-6AAAAIAAJ&q=australia+historically+protestant|isbn=9780582712584}} Catholics first outnumbered Anglicans in the 1986 census.Australian Bureau of Statistics, "[https://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/2f762f95845417aeca25706c00834efa/10072ec3ffc4f7b4ca2570ec00787c40!OpenDocument Special Feature: Trends in religious affiliation]", 4102.0 - Australian Social Trends, 1994 As a result of this history, while Australia has no official religion and "no religion" constitutes the largest group by religious identification, the various governments of Australia refer to the Christian God in their ceremonies, as do the various Australian Courts.{{cite web|url=http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/by%20Subject/2071.0~2016~Main%20Features~Religion%20Data%20Summary~70|title=Religion in Australia, 2016|publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics|date=28 June 2017|access-date=31 January 2018}} In all censuses since 1991, the percentage of Christians has been steadily decreasing, while the percentage of non-religious has been increasing.{{Cite news |date=27 June 2022 |title=Churches are increasingly empty as more Australians spurn religion |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-06-28/census-2021-data-shows-a-changed-australia/101177152 |access-date=1 October 2024 |work=ABC News |language=en-AU}}

As in many Western countries, the level of active participation in religious services is lower than would be indicated by the proportion of the population identifying themselves as affiliated with a religion; weekly attendance at Christian church services is about 1.5 million, or about 7.5% of the population.{{cite web|title=NCLS releases latest estimates of church attendance|url=http://www.ncls.org.au/default.aspx?docid=2250&track=82083|work=NCLS Research|access-date=24 April 2013|format=Media release|date=28 February 2012}} Christian charitable organisations, hospitals and schools play a prominent role in welfare and education services. The Catholic education system is the second biggest sector after government schools, with more than 795,000 students (and around 20 per cent of all secondary school enrolments).{{cite web | url=https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/education/schools/latest-release#students | title=Schools, 2022 | Australian Bureau of Statistics | date=15 February 2023 }}

{{see also|Median household income in Australia and New Zealand}}

File:Australian Census 2011 demographic map - Australia by SLA - BCP field 0115 Median total household income weekly.svg

In trend terms, in April 2025, the Australian labour force consisted of 14,622,100 people, representing a seasonal employment rate of 64.4%; on the same time, unemployment and underemployment rates remained at 4.1% and 6.0% respectively.{{Cite web|url=https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/labour/employment-and-unemployment/labour-force-australia/latest-release#unemployment|title=Labour Force, Australia, April 2025|website=Australian Bureau of Statistics|access-date=7 June 2025}} At the 2021 census, the national median weekly personal income across Australia was $789, and the median weekly household income was $1,770. More than half of people had employee wages and salary as their main source of income (56.4% or more than 10.5 million people). Government benefits and allowances were the main source of income for 23.4% or 4.4 million people.{{Cite web|url=https://www.abs.gov.au/articles/new-census-insights-income-australia-using-administrative-data#main-source-of-income|title=New Census insights on income in Australia using administrative data|website=Australian Bureau of Statistics|access-date=7 June 2025}}

{{Portal|Australia}}

{{columns-list|colwidth=40em|

• Ageing of Australia
• Health care in Australia
• History of public health in Australia
• Homelessness in Australia
• White Australia Policy
• List of cities in Australia
• Demographics of Sydney
• Demographics of Melbourne
• Demographics of Brisbane
• Demographics of Canberra
• European Australians
• Asian Australians
• Aboriginal Australians
• Religion in Australia

}}

{{notelist-ua}}

{{reflist|group=N}}

{{Reflist}}

; General references

{{refbegin}}

• {{CIA World Factbook|year=2006}}

{{refend}}

• Jupp, James. The Australian People: An Encyclopedia of the Nation, its People and their Origins (2002)
• O'Farrell, Patrick. The Irish in Australia: 1798 to the Present Day (3rd ed. Cork University Press, 2001)
• Wells, Andrew, and Theresa Martinez, eds. Australia's Diverse Peoples: A Reference Sourcebook (ABC-CLIO, 2004)

{{commons category|Demographics of Australia}}

• [http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/24E36F628AD35006CA25773700169C5C?opendocument Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Year Book Australia, 2009–10]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20160206133316/http://arrow.monash.edu.au/vital/access/services/Download/monash%3A63895/DOC Australian population: ethnic origins (DOC)]
• [https://archive.today/20150404121423/http://itbulk.org/population/population-by-country/ Build Australian population graph 1960 – 2013 (World Bank data)]
• [https://archive.today/20150220095949/http://itbulk.org/population/population-projection-by-country/ Build Australian population projection graph till 2100 (United Nation data)]
• [https://archive.today/20150404121433/http://itbulk.org/population/life-expectancy-by-country/ Build Australian life expectancy at birth graph 1950 – 2013 (United Nation data)]
• [https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs%40.nsf/94713ad445ff1425ca25682000192af2/1647509ef7e25faaca2568a900154b63?OpenDocument Australia's population clock]

{{Oceania topic|Demographics of}}

{{Australia topics}}

{{Ancestry of Australians}}

{{ethnicity}}

{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Demographics Of Australia}}